Marvin and Stuart get to sleep over at Nick Tuffle’s house for Nick’s birthday. They set out sleeping bags in the Tuffles’ backyard. Stuart and Nick fall right to sleep, but Marvin tosses and turns. Then he hears a noise, and something glowing zooms over his head. Is it really a flying birthday cake? Or something else? The next day, a very strange new kid shows up at school. . . .

Marvin and Stuart get to sleep over at Nick Tuffle’s house for Nick’s birthday. They set out sleeping bags in the Tuffles’ backyard. Stuart and Nick fall right to sleep, but Marvin tosses and turns. Then he hears a noise, and something glowing zooms over his head. Is it really a flying birthday cake? Or something else? The next day, a very strange new kid shows up at school. . . . Louis Sachar is the bestselling author of the award-winning novel Holes, as well asSmall Steps, The Cardturner, Stanley Yelnats’ Survival Guide to Camp Green Lake, There’s a Boy in the Girls’ Bathroom, The Boy Who Lost His Face, Dogs Don’t Tell Jokes, and the rest of the Marvin Redpost series, among many others. Visit him at louissachar.com.